Random Writings: B is for
by themusicain
Summary: A collection of snippets/ drabbles/ headcanons/ sketches/ anything else really from a list of titles beginning with the letter B
1. Brains

Brains

The more they thought about it, the more they realised how little they actually knew about Brains. When their father had first introduced him as the man who would design their fantastic machines, the Tracy boys' first instinct was to laugh. This small, nervous, stuttering, bespectacled man, barely into his twenties, the designer of brilliant machines that would save lives? Pull the other one.

But as he showed them his early sketches and schematics, a grudging respect began to manifest itself within them. John in particular, on a similar wavelength to the young genius, saw that what this man was attempting to create was _years_ ahead of anything else. What was more, he knew how to make it reality.

Slowly, Brains found his way into the Tracy family, casting firm friendships with each of them. But now, today, they realised how little they actually knew about him.

Brains never went "home." He never discussed his past. Come to think of it, they didn't even know his real name! And, truth be told, he spent a great deal of time in his lab, improving the 'birds, or designing new safety equipment.

Sometimes, Alan or John (depending on who was planet-side) would stroll in and give him a hand. Tin-Tin often spent hours on end helping Brains with his work, usually reminding him of the feasibility of his designs, or questioning their practicality. However, even these three wouldn't be able to write up a decent biography if asked.

So when Brains walked into the lounge that morning, eyes red and a letter crushed in his shaking fist, the boys had no idea what to do or say.

Jeff on the other hand, looked up from his work with an understanding expression on his face, and pulled the scientist out onto the balcony, closing the French windows behind them.

The next day, Jeff flew Brains out to the mainland, the pair dressed in black suits, and didn't return until a couple of days later.

* * *

 **For those of you new to this, this is a collection of random snippets based around the letter B. For those of you familiar with the set of A snippets: welcome back.**

 **A slightly sad one to begin with. There is a bio for Brains, which doesn't really have much, though it does mention him being an orphan that was adopted by a Cambridge professor. Brains doesn't strike me as one to talk much about himself, so I suspect the Tracy brothers don't actually know that much about him. The name "Hiram Hackenbacker" was an alias in the original series, although it seems to be his real name now.**


	2. Brothers

Brothers

It was certainly Danya's lucky day.

First of all, she was in a bar surrounded by five _gorgeous_ men.

Secondly, they were all brothers, each individual and yet so similar. Two blondes, both blue eyed, yet whilst one's shone with youthful exuberance, the other's were more thoughtful, the darker blue of his eyes sparking with a wit and intelligence just waiting for the right moment. Two dark heads, another one with blue eyes that were firm yet friendly, the other with honey-coloured eyes you could just melt into. And a red-head, body toned from hours spent swimming, his light-brown eyes twinkling with mischief.

Thirdly, they were all amazingly talented and successful. An astronaut with three university textbooks published. A race-car driver who'd won more races than she could count. An engineer, artist and musician. A pilot of the highest calibre. An Olympic gold-medallist.

Fourthly, they were filthy rich, sons of the billionaire Jeff Tracy. Of course, Danya liked to think that this didn't matter in the whole scheme of things. But it was certainly a bonus.

But then one of them got a phone-call from someone called Tin-Tin, and started to get more and more sombre, before murmuring something to his brothers. As one, they stood up, made their apologies, and left, leaving Danya alone at a table with a lot of empty glasses. It wasn't a good look.

 _So close_ , she thought morosely. Could she never get a break? Danya sighed. She guessed she had as much chance of finding a decent man as she did attracting those guys from International Rescue.

* * *

 **As I've said before, you never know quite what a title will inspire, which is why I created this exercise for myself in the first place. I don't know what scenario would ever allow the five boys out together in public (no, that's _not_ what I mean! =P), but meh.**

 **There aren't as many titles in my list for B at the moment, so we'll see how it goes. And thanks so much to those of you who have been following and favouriting.**


	3. Braman

Braman

Truth be told, the little robot freaked Virgil out. Its cold facelessness, it's jerky, precise movements, the harsh robotic voice; everything about it was the opposite of everything he loved and cared about. But right now, people that he loved and cared about relied on this little robot.

Brains had given it the equation, and he could hear it ticking, working out each digit, precious time draining away as Three sped towards the Sun. The two men watched expectantly, barely daring to even breathe, and suddenly, this robot wasn't just a cold machine, it was a being, with a name, an intelligence, a _personality_ if one could argue that a lack of personality was in itself a type of personality. Suddenly, Virgil cared for this little robot more than he thought possible. This robot was all that stood between him and losing his brothers and friend forever.

* * *

 **Truth be told, I've never been 100% happy with this one. Braman creeped me out a little bit in all honesty, and he never featured much apart from that particular episode**


	4. Breakdown

Breakdown

Occasionally, even Brains' incredible creations failed.

As the usual whir of the Mole's blades became a screeching, crunching sound, the feeling of dread barely had time to settle in the pit of Virgil's stomach before the machine spluttered, the console lit up with flashing lights, and his ears were assaulted with a cacophony of alarms. Then everything stopped, leaving him in silent darkness.

Suddenly Virgil was very conscious of the weight of the earth above him, the sound his own breathing in the tiny cabin, the lack of light pressing against his eyes. He reached out, feeling his way across the console, trying every switch his fingertips encountered. Nothing.

Trying to keep his breathing steady, he called Scott, the tiny watch face lighting up like a beacon.

"Mole to Mobile Control."

" _Here, Virgil. Why have you stopped?_ "

"The Mole's broken down. The console's completely dead; I'm not getting any response from her at all."

" _I'm calling Brains just now. Any idea what happened?_ "

Virgil shook his head, even though Scott couldn't see him. "I think something's got jammed somewhere. I heard it crunch before everything shut off. Scott…"

" _I know, Virgil, I know_." A rush of static as Scott sighed. " _I'm patching Brains through just now_."

" _V-virgil, what have you t-tried?"_

"I've tried every switch on the console, nothing's responding. I think I heard something jam."

" _Th-that shouldn't be._ "

 _Well, it is_ , Virgil thought angrily, biting his tongue to stop himself snapping at the scientist. "Scott, the folks in the car park are still trapped, can you-"

" _I'm on my way with the laser to cut through from above. It'll be slow, but-_ "

"Faster than I'm going right now." Virgil rubbed a hand over his face in frustration. "It's fine, Scott, me and Brains'll figure something out."

" _Okay, just keep me posted. Mobile Control out_."

Frustration overtaking his rising claustrophobia for a moment, Virgil turned his mind back to the situation at hand.

"Brains, what can I do?"

" _Have you got any light at all?_ "

"No. I should have a couple of lamps in the lockers, though." Locating the compact lamps was difficult with just the light from his watch, but eventually his one-handed rummaging produced the little ovals. He pulled it open, flooding the cabin with light. "Okay, at least I can see now.

" _In the tool locker, there sh-should be a p-pen drive._ "

"Got it."

" _P-p-plug it into the port j-just beneath the diagnostic screen, then p-press the, ah, b-button on the end_."

Virgil did so, and a holographic display lit up above the tiny device.

" _N-navigate as you would normally_."

Virgil saw what he meant- the display was the same as he would find on the diagnostic screen were it working, and with Brains' help soon found the error log.

"I was right, something's jammed in the earth ejection system."

" _The d-d-damage is reparable, but we w-will need to pull the Mole b-b-back out._ "

"Two could do it, but I can't get out."

" _It's fine, Virgil, I'm qualified_ _to fly Two. You trained me, after all_."

"Scott!" Virgil jumped slightly. "Are the victims-"

" _All safe and sound. I'm just heading over to Two now_."

"But…" Virgil sighed, plonking his head down on the console. There was no point in arguing, it's not as if they had any other choice. And despite the light from the lamp, Virgil was beginning to become aware of his cramped surroundings again; it didn't help that it was starting to get a bit stuffy. He tried to focus of Scott's chatter as he started up Two. A thud told him Scott had fired the grapple successfully, and soon after he felt a lurch as Scott winched him back in.

As soon as he was out, Virgil leapt from the cockpit and took in lungfuls of fresh air, his hands resting on his knees. A soot-smeared Scott grinned, rubbing his back.

"International Rescue, at your service."

Virgil glared at him.

* * *

 **This was written after the episode of the same name, although as you can see it has nothing to do with it =P I nearly wrote myself into a corner of technical bluffing with this one**


	5. Birds

Birds

They often referred to their machines as "birds", even though only three of them could really be described as such. Whenever Scott, Virgil or Alan pointed this out, however, Gordon would simply retort that Four was a penguin, and leave it at that. John usually made some point about having a "bird's eye view" and would turn the conversation to a philosophical bent if his brothers didn't stop him quickly enough.

The first time they met Parker, he made a comment about Alan's "bird", and it took them all a moment to realise that he meant Tin-Tin (earning a blush from the astronaut), rather than Three.

* * *

 **There was originally more to this, which I was never happy with, so I've turned it into a mini-head canon instead =P**


	6. Brave

Brave

It was a word often used with abandon when describing them. Virgil personally never quite felt he _was_. He and his family were just doing what was right, surely? They were in a position to help people, it was their responsibility. Virgil never considered he was being _brave_.

Gordon, now _he_ was brave. Four months after an accident that should have left him crippled for life, and he walked out of that hospital on crutches and won Olympic gold a year later. That was sheer bravery, keeping going against all the odds.

His father, hurtling himself into space long before it became the norm. _That_ was brave. Jeff Tracy had no real way of being certain he would make it home, no true assurance he would survive. But he did it anyway, to help further mankind's growth.

John was brave, Virgil thought. John had abandoned all pretence at a normal life to further the cause of International Rescue, to be reachable at all hours; and in the meantime isolating himself, spending long periods alone in the vacuum of space.

Lady Penelope was incredibly brave. She walked into difficult and dangerous situations where backup was nigh impossible, or at the most Parker waiting in FAB 1. Assuming cover identities, dealing with known criminals- it took a lot of guts to do what she did, Virgil thought.

When he tried to apply the word to himself, Virgil just couldn't see it. Scott would snort whenever Virgil said so after yet another reporter applauded his "brave heroics."

"Virgil, you enter dangerous situations every week, you risk your own life for the sake of others. If that isn't brave, I don't know what is."

"But I'm not defending my country on the front line, or overcoming debilitating injuries, or-"

"Virgil." Scott fixed him with a steady look, turning off the TV. "Trust me. The people of this organisation- including you- are some of the bravest people I know. Accept the compliment for what it is, and just keep doing what you do."

* * *

 **Sometimes we have qualities that we can't see ourselves, because to us it's just how we are, and we couldn't imagine acting any differently.**

 **And that's as reflective as I'm willing to go today =P**

 **This is the last of my B titles for now- there weren't many to begin with. We'll see if any more pop up in my head, otherwise I'll start posting C in a few days (after Christmas, for obvious reasons =P)**

 **Have a good one!**


End file.
